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Joyce Fairbairn

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The Honourable
Joyce Fairbairn
PC CM
Leader of the Government in the Senate
In office
November 4, 1993 – June 10, 1997
Prime MinisterJean Chrétien
DeputyGildas Molgat
Alasdair Graham
WhipJacques Hébert
Preceded byLowell Murray
Succeeded byAlasdair Graham
Minister with special responsibility for Literacy
In office
November 4, 1993 – June 10, 1997
Prime MinisterJean Chrétien
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byPosition abolished
Canadian Senator
from Lethbridge
In office
June 29, 1984 – January 18, 2013
Nominated byPierre Trudeau
Appointed byJeanne Sauvé
Preceded byHarry Hays (1982)
Succeeded byDoug Black
Personal details
Born(1939-11-06)November 6, 1939
Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
DiedMarch 29, 2022(2022-03-29) (aged 82)
Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
Political partyLiberal
Spouse
Michael Gillan
​
​
(m. 1967; died 2002)​
Alma materUniversity of Alberta
Carleton University
ProfessionJournalist

Joyce Fairbairn PC CM (November 6, 1939 – March 29, 2022) was a Canadian senator and was the first woman to serve as the leader of the Government in the Senate.

Early life and education

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Born in Lethbridge, Alberta on November 6, 1939,[1] Fairbairn was the daughter of Mary Elizabeth (née Young) and Lynden Eldon Fairbairn, a judge of the District Court of Alberta, lawyer, and Liberal candidate for the 1935 and 1940 federal elections in Lethbridge.[2] She was a teenage journalist when she was a student at Lethbridge Collegiate Institute, and wrote a column entitled "Teen Chatter" in the Lethbridge Herald.[1] She attended the University of Alberta where she earned a bachelor's degree in English and Carleton University where she earned a degree in journalism.[3] She married Michael Charles Frederick Gillan in 1967; he died in 2002.[4]

Political life

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Fairbairn worked as a journalist in the Parliamentary Press Gallery in Ottawa before being hired as a legislative assistant to Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau in 1970. In 1981, she became Communications Coordinator in the Prime Minister's Office. On June 29, 1984, just prior to leaving office, Trudeau recommended her for appointment as a Liberal senator for Alberta, her home province.[5] Over the years as a senator, she held a number of positions within the Liberal Party, including Vice-Chair of the National as well as the Western and Northern Liberal Caucus from 1984 to 1991,[6] and Co-Chair of the National Campaign Committee for her party in 1991.[6]

When the Liberals returned to power after the 1993 election, Prime Minister Jean Chrétien appointed Fairbairn to the cabinet as Government Leader in the Senate, the first female senator in the post, and Minister with Special Responsibility for Literacy.[6][7] She served in cabinet until 1997, after which she took on the role as Special Advisor on Literacy to the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development.[8] She also chaired the Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry, and the Special Senate Committee on the Anti-terrorism Act.[9] She sat on the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry until June 2012.[10]

Fairbairn became involved with the Paralympics movement in Canada as early as 1998. That year, to counter a funding shortfall, she spearheaded fundraising efforts to send a Canadian team to compete in the 2000 Paralympic Games in Sydney, Australia, through "Friends of the Paralympics", a group that grew and became "a strong political and fundraising voice for the Canadian Paralympic Movement". By 2000, she co-founded and chaired the Canadian Paralympic Foundation, the first official charitable foundation connected to the Canadian Paralympic Committee, to secure long-term financial support for Paralympic athletes and the committee.[11] In recognition of her role in promoting and supporting Paralympic sports across the country, she was inducted to the Canadian Paralympic Hall of Fame as a builder in 2011.[12]

In August 2012, Fairbairn took indefinite sick leave from the Senate due to the onset of Alzheimer's disease.[10] It was subsequently reported that Fairbairn had been declared legally incompetent in February but had continued voting in the Senate until June.[13] The Fairbairn case led to calls for the Senate to establish rules to address similar situations should they arise.[14] On November 30, 2012, she tendered her resignation to the Governor General with effect from January 18, 2013.[15][7]

Later life

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On March 11, 2018, it was announced that the new middle school in Lethbridge, Alberta would be named after Fairbairn.[16] It was named Senator Joyce Fairbairn Middle School, and opened in the fall of 2018.[17]

Joyce Fairbairn died in Lethbridge on March 29, 2022, at the age of 82.[1][18][19]

Honours

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Commonwealth honours

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Country Date Appointment Post-nominal letters
 Canada November 4, 1993 – March 29, 2022 Member of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada[6] PC
 Canada August 12, 2015 – March 29, 2022 Member of the Order of Canada[20][21] CM
 Canada 1992 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal
 Canada 2002 Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (Canadian Version)[22]
 Canada 2012 Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (Canadian Version)[23]

Scholastic

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Honorary Degrees
Location Date School Degree Gave Commencement Address
 Alberta Spring 2004 University of Lethbridge Doctor of Laws (LL.D)[24] Yes

References

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  1. ^ a b c Beeber, Al (March 31, 2022). "Lethbridge mourns Senator Fairbairn". Lethbridge Herald. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  2. ^ Parker, Charles Whately; Greene, Barnet M. (March 30, 2001). Who's who in Canada. International Press. ISBN 9781553350026 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ Mardon, Austin (July 21, 2014). Lethbridge Politicians: Federal, Provincial & Civic. Lulu.com. ISBN 9781897472552 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ "Michael Charles Frederick "Mike" GILLAN Obituary". The Globe and Mail. Legacy.com. July 2, 2002. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  5. ^ "Senators appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister". lop.parl.ca. Parliament of Canada. Retrieved April 2, 2022. 32|Fairbairn, Joyce|1984-06-29|Alberta|...
  6. ^ a b c d "The Liberal Team | Senators | Honourable Joyce Fairbairn". www.collectionscanada.gc.ca. Liberal Party of Canada. 2005. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  7. ^ a b "SENATORS' STATEMENTS | The Honourable Joyce Fairbairn, P.C." Debates - Issue 125 - December 4, 2012. Senate of Canada. December 4, 2012. Retrieved April 2, 2022. Senator James Cowan: Honourable senators, last Friday we all received a communication from the Clerk advising that Senator Joyce Fairbairn is resigning from the Senate effective next month. ... Senator Fairbairn has spent some 50 years here on Parliament Hill, blazing a path as one of the first women journalists in the Parliamentary Press Gallery, then as a senior adviser to Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau, and then here in the Senate where she was the first woman to serve as the Leader of the Government. ... Senator: Marjory LeBreton:I did want to make a brief statement today following receipt of Senator Fairbairn's letter of resignation from the Senate of Canada effective January 18. ... When she was named to the federal cabinet in 1993 by former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, Senator Fairbairn was also made Minister with Special Responsibility for Literacy
  8. ^ "Senator Fairbairn re-appointed as Special Advisor on Literacy". www.canada.ca. Human Resources and Skills Development Canada. April 30, 2004. Retrieved April 4, 2022.
  9. ^ "Profile: The Hon. Joyce Fairbairn, P.C., C.M., Senator". lop.parl.ca. Parliament of Canada. Retrieved April 4, 2022.
  10. ^ a b McGregor, Glen (August 22, 2012). "Liberal Senator Joyce Fairbairn to take sick leave after Alzheimer's diagnosis". Ottawa Citizen. web.archive.org. Archived from the original on August 27, 2012. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  11. ^ "CPC mourns the loss of Joyce Fairbairn | Canadian Paralympic Committee". paralympic.ca. Canadian Paralympic Committee. March 29, 2022. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
  12. ^ "Senator Joyce Fairbairn, Builder". paralympic.ca. Canadian Paralympic Committee. Retrieved April 3, 2022.
  13. ^ "Liberal leadership allowed 'legally incompetent' senator to vote months after dementia diagnosis". National Post. August 27, 2012. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  14. ^ Smith, Joanna (August 28, 2012). "Joyce Fairbairn's voting shakes public's confidence, says Tory senator". Toronto Star. Retrieved March 5, 2024.
  15. ^ Galloway, Gloria (November 30, 2012). "Liberal Senator Joyce Fairbairn set to retire following dementia diagnosis". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved November 30, 2012.
  16. ^ "New public middle school named after Senator Joyce Fairbairn". The Lethbridge Herald. March 12, 2018. Archived from the original on March 13, 2018. Retrieved March 5, 2024.
  17. ^ Smith, Geoff (September 14, 2018). "Senator Joyce Fairbairn Middle School formally opens". Lethbridge News Now. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  18. ^ "Former Canadian senator Joyce Fairbairn dead at 82". CBC News. Calgary. March 29, 2022. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  19. ^ "Senator Joyce Fairbairn November 6, 1939 ~ March 29, 2022 (age 82)". Obituary for Senator Joyce Fairbairn. Martin Brothers Funeral Chapels. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  20. ^ "Four Nova Scotians among Order of Canada honourees". The Chronicle-Herald. July 1, 2015. Archived from the original on July 1, 2015. Retrieved March 5, 2024.
  21. ^ "Joyce Fairbairn's Order of Canada Citation". Governor General of Canada. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  22. ^ "Joyce Fairbairn's Golden Jubilee Medal Citation". Governor General of Canada. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  23. ^ "Joyce Fairbairn's Diamonnd Jubilee Medal Citation". Governor General of Canada. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
  24. ^ "Honorary Degree Recipients" (PDF). The University of Lethbridge. Retrieved March 30, 2022.
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26th Ministry – Cabinet of Jean Chrétien
Cabinet post (1)
Predecessor Office Successor
Lowell Murray Leader of the Government in the Senate
1993–1997 		Alasdair Graham
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